Ladywell v Dulwich Park - Ron Hams Cup bowls match report

Ladywell played their third match in the Round Robin stage of the Ron Hams Cup on Saturday 27th June, with a home bowls game against Dulwich Park. Having already won the away fixture in May, Ladywell were hoping to do the double over Dulwich Park and further their chances of finishing in the top two places in the table, which would mean qualification for the Cup final later in the season.

The Ron Hams Cup involves a singles match, a pair and a triple, playing on the same green at the same time. The winning club in each match gains two points and the winning club when all three scores are combined gain another four points.

In the singles match, Ladywell Club Captain Phil Welch started strongly, moving into a 9-0 lead after five ends, before his opponent got on the board with a score of two on the sixth end. But Phil pulled further ahead over the following three ends, gaining four shots, before the Dulwich Park player gained another shot to reduce the deficit to 13-3. Phil was playing some excellent bowls and finding the jack almost at will, while his opponent had no luck at all, often finding the smallest of gaps to just miss the target. With a winning score of 21 points in his sights, Phil capitalised on his good fortune, picking up three shots on the 11th end to move into a 16-3 lead. He added a further two shots on the 12th end, bringing him within touching distance of the winning score. And he played an outstanding 13th end, surrounding the jack with all four woods, to score the winning points and finish the match, winning by 21-3.

In the pairs match, the strong Ladywell pair of Norman Lewis and Skip, Steve Marlow, exchanged shots with their opponents over the first four ends, with the visitors taking a slight 4-3 advantage. Norman and Steve gained single shots over the following two ends, before their opponents squared the tie at 5-5 after seven ends. But the two ends before the break saw the Ladywell pair pull away, with a single and then a score of four, to go into the drinks break 10-5 up. They continued this excellent form after the break, scoring seven shots over the next three ends to move into a 17-5 lead and although their opponents gained a single shot on the 13th end, they closed out the game convincingly, scoring another nine shots without reply over the final five ends to run out comfortable winners by 25-6.

The triples match saw the Ladywell team of Merlin Ramdawar, Ian Bradford and Skip, Robert Dunn, take a four shot lead over the first three ends, before their opponents gained a single shot on the fourth end. The Dulwich Park team pulled back two more shots on the fifth end, but Ladywell extended their lead again over the following three ends, scoring nine shots without reply to take a 13-3 lead. Their opponents pulled back a shot on the last end before the drinks break, and they continued to chip away at Ladywell's lead after the break, with single shots on both the 10th and 11th ends, before the home team hit back with two shots of their own on the 12th. The Dulwich Park triple gained two more shots on the 13th end, but Ladywell responded once again with two shots on the 14th. The Dulwich Park team weren't out of it, and they gained two shots on the 15th end, to reduce the deficit to 17-10. But Ladywell extended their lead over the last three ends, with two singles and a final score of four shots to finish with a comfortable 23-10 win.

This meant Ladywell took maximum points, with two points for each win and the additional four points for the overall 69-19 win - an emphatic score, which also has a positive effect on the club's points difference.

So, at the halfway point in the Round Robin stage, Ladywell sit top of the table: